Health Department administrator invited to Twin Cities run

Sunday

Sep 30, 2012 at 5:52 PM

Patrick Johnson doesn't think of himself as a hero, but is quick to say the 24 people he's running with during the Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon are.

BUNNELL — Patrick Johnson doesn't think of himself as a hero, but is quick to say the 24 people he's running with during the Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon are. The Ormond Beach resident and Flagler County Health Department administrator was selected by the company to run a 10-mile "short cut" portion of the marathon Friday because he, like the others selected this year, has benefited in one form or another of an "implanted medical device." "They are the real story, not me," said Johnson, who is a vegetarian and an Air Force Reserves nurse. "These people have amazing stories." Fellow runners include: a 15-year-old from Baldwin with cerebral palsy who has medicine automatically dispensed by an implanted pump to relieve his muscle spasms; 30-year-old twins from Brazil whose diabetes are treated with an insulin pump; two people with Parkinson's Disease who are treated with deep brain stimulation; as well as people who have suffered spinal cord injuries; have pacemakers and implantable cardioverter defibrillators. "We look at a number of different disease conditions," said Rich Fischer, Medtronic spokesman, of the race the company has sponsored for the past seven years. "When you are selecting a group to run long distances (under these circumstances), it can be a small group. We have runners from 15 to 72 years old." Johnson, 58, had a heart valve repair to treat mitral valve disease. He found out about his heart murmur in 2007 when his wife, Kathie, who is also a nurse, insisted he go in for some routine medical tests. "An echocardiogram found it," Kathie Johnson said. "If he hadn't gone for those tests, it would have gone undetected. He had been running for years (since 1974) and was in good shape." With the help of his wife, Johnson underwent a seven-hour long, though mildly invasive, surgery that had him out of the hospital in two days, back two work in two weeks and running a 5K seven weeks later. "I didn't quite tell her everything I was doing (to get back into shape)," Johnson said. "He didn't miss a single (Air Force> reserve weekend," she said. "I thought he should have taken a little more time off of work." Mary Lachendro and Bonnie Welter, who work with Johnson at the Health Department, said the dedication and tenacity he brings to everything in his life helped him recover so quickly. "He's very dedicated to running and health," Lachendro. "He's one of the people who organizes the annual 'Change of Life 5K.' That's just the way he is." Johnson is "great mentor and role model," Welter said. "I'm trying to think of something wonderful to say," she said. "I have the greatest respect for him, and that can-do attitude carries over into all areas of his life: work, running, family." The Johnsons have been married for 22 years and while it would seem logical their paths crossed because they are both medical professionals, they met because of their passion for running. They told their story recently from a bench at the U.S. 1 end of the Lehigh Trail. "We met at a 1988 race in Ormond Beach," Patrick Johnson said. "It was a 30K or 18 miles, or you could run it as a relay. Both of us only wanted to run the 9 miles, but neither of us had a partner so they put us together." "I was standing there and I was thinking I don't know what he looks like, I hope he recognizes me," Kathie Johnson said. "I remembered her name though," Patrick Johnson said. "Yeah. He was yelling my name, so I figured that was him," she said. They became friends, started dating a year later and then wed. "Running has always been part of our married life," Kathie Johnson said. She will run along side her husband, who is originally from St. Paul, Minn., during the race, which is fitting especially given that she underwent brain surgery in February. "I've had to start training for this from square one," she said. Patrick Johnson is looking forward to seeing his two brothers while he's there and visiting his parents' graves. "The bottom line is that regular checkups really matter," he said. "I would not have caught this. It was a congenital heart defect that had been small, but showed up at 50."

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